Sentry Page Protection
How to Dehydrate Cabbage
There is a cabbage shortage at the moment, who would have ever thought that there would be a shortage of this stock standard, everyday vegetable? That shortage is pushing prices through the roof; really, cabbage is so expensive at the moment that even coleslaw is a treat unless you grow your own.
Of course, growing your own means you often have a glut of cabbage to use up, before it mildews. Cabbage will freeze, but once it's thawed it's really only good for using in cooking.
Have you ever tried to dehydrate cabbage? You may be asking why on earth you'd want to dehydrate cabbage. You may be thinking "she's finally taken preserving too far".
Well let me tell you, dehydrating cabbage is a wonderful thing to do.
Cabbage doesn't keep well, no matter how we try to store it. It will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks, or in the pantry if it is cool and dark for about a month, but after that it mildews and yellows and just isn't good to use.
But it is such a handy vegetable, full of nutrients, making it an easy way to get vitamins and minerals into your family's diet without spending a fortune.
Cabbage is very low in kilojoules, but it's packed full of other vitamins and minerals. According to FoodData Central*, just 100 grams of raw, green cabbage contains just 103 kilojoules!
Of course, growing your own means you often have a glut of cabbage to use up, before it mildews. Cabbage will freeze, but once it's thawed it's really only good for using in cooking.
Have you ever tried to dehydrate cabbage? You may be asking why on earth you'd want to dehydrate cabbage. You may be thinking "she's finally taken preserving too far".
Well let me tell you, dehydrating cabbage is a wonderful thing to do.
Cabbage doesn't keep well, no matter how we try to store it. It will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks, or in the pantry if it is cool and dark for about a month, but after that it mildews and yellows and just isn't good to use.
But it is such a handy vegetable, full of nutrients, making it an easy way to get vitamins and minerals into your family's diet without spending a fortune.
Cabbage is very low in kilojoules, but it's packed full of other vitamins and minerals. According to FoodData Central*, just 100 grams of raw, green cabbage contains just 103 kilojoules!
It also contains:
Protein: 1g
Fiber: 2g
Vitamin K: 56% of the Daily Value (DV)
Vitamin C: 36% of the DV
Folate: 10% of the DV
Manganese: 6% of the DV
Vitamin B6: 6% of the DV
Calcium: 3% of the DV
Potassium: 3% of the DV
Magnesium: 3% of the DV
Cabbage also contains small amounts of other micronutrients, including vitamin A, iron, and riboflavin.
It is one nutrition packed vegetable!
Protein: 1g
Fiber: 2g
Vitamin K: 56% of the Daily Value (DV)
Vitamin C: 36% of the DV
Folate: 10% of the DV
Manganese: 6% of the DV
Vitamin B6: 6% of the DV
Calcium: 3% of the DV
Potassium: 3% of the DV
Magnesium: 3% of the DV
Cabbage also contains small amounts of other micronutrients, including vitamin A, iron, and riboflavin.
It is one nutrition packed vegetable!
So how do you dehydrate cabbage? The process is simple, and very easy:
1. Slice the cabbage into wide slices, about 5cm thick.
2. Blanch the cabbage slices with a pinch of bicarb soda (just a pinch - no more or it will taste terrible). This maintains the colour and brightness of the cabbage, making it much more palatable when dehydrated. To blanch, add the cabbage to boiling water, bring back to the boil, boil for 1 minute, remove and dunk into icy cold water for a few seconds to stop the cooking process. Drain well. Repeat for all the cabbage slices.
3. Lay the drained cabbage chunks out on the dehydrator trays.
4. Add to dehydrator. Set the temperature to 60 degrees Celsius (140 Fahrenheit) and let it dry for 12 - 15 hours. Long and slow is the secret to good dehydrated cabbage. Make sure it is completely dry and crisp, it should snap when you bend it. Cabbage is mostly water so it will shrink a lot, don't be worried about that. It also needs a longer drying time because of that water - don't worry if it takes the full 15 hours.
5. Let it cool completely before storing in air-tight containers or vacuum seal for long-term food storage. Keep it in a cool, dark cupboard to maintain the colour.
To rehydrate the cabbage, put it into a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil. Boil for 10 - 15 minutes until the cabbage is completely rehydrated, soft and tender.
1. Slice the cabbage into wide slices, about 5cm thick.
2. Blanch the cabbage slices with a pinch of bicarb soda (just a pinch - no more or it will taste terrible). This maintains the colour and brightness of the cabbage, making it much more palatable when dehydrated. To blanch, add the cabbage to boiling water, bring back to the boil, boil for 1 minute, remove and dunk into icy cold water for a few seconds to stop the cooking process. Drain well. Repeat for all the cabbage slices.
3. Lay the drained cabbage chunks out on the dehydrator trays.
4. Add to dehydrator. Set the temperature to 60 degrees Celsius (140 Fahrenheit) and let it dry for 12 - 15 hours. Long and slow is the secret to good dehydrated cabbage. Make sure it is completely dry and crisp, it should snap when you bend it. Cabbage is mostly water so it will shrink a lot, don't be worried about that. It also needs a longer drying time because of that water - don't worry if it takes the full 15 hours.
5. Let it cool completely before storing in air-tight containers or vacuum seal for long-term food storage. Keep it in a cool, dark cupboard to maintain the colour.
To rehydrate the cabbage, put it into a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil. Boil for 10 - 15 minutes until the cabbage is completely rehydrated, soft and tender.
How to use your dehydrated cabbage
*Throw it into soups.
*Use it to make Kai Si Min.
*Rehydrate it, fry it in a little garlic and oil and serve it as a vegetable.
*Add it to vegetable pancakes a la Okonomiyaki.
*Throw it into soups.
*Use it to make Kai Si Min.
*Rehydrate it, fry it in a little garlic and oil and serve it as a vegetable.
*Add it to vegetable pancakes a la Okonomiyaki.
References |